The present exemplary embodiment relates to a line guide attachable to a fishing rod. It finds particular application in conjunction with line guides mountable to a ring of an existing line guide of a fishing rod, and will be described with particular reference thereto. However, it is to be appreciated that the present exemplary embodiment is also amenable to other like applications.
Fishing rods are typically provided with a number of spaced apart rings for guiding line from a rod tip to a reel mounted on a butt end of the fishing rod. The rings, often referred to as line guides, generally vary in sizes from a smallest diameter ring located at the tip of the fishing rod to a largest diameter ring located towards the butt end of the fishing rod and closest to the reel mounted to the fishing rod. The line guides serve to guide fishing line from the reel to the rod tip during casting operations, and serve to guide the fishing line from the tip of the rod back to the reel during retrieval, as well as to bear the load created on the fishing line during fish fighting operations.
One type of fishing reel that is commonly used is a spinning reel. A spinning reel generally includes a fixed spool of fishing line having a central axis that is aligned and spaced apart from a longitudinal axis of the fishing rod. In general, during casting the fishing line is stripped off of the spool in a helical fashion. This is because the spool of fishing line itself does not spin during casting or retrieval but, rather, the fishing line is pulled axially off the spool during casting. During retrieval, a spinning bale of the reel retrieves the fishing line and wraps it around the spool.
As it is generally desirable to have the ability to cast as far as possible, various attempts have been made to reduce the friction between the line and the ring guides during casting operations to maximize casting efficiency. Many attempts have focused on reducing friction between the line and the ring of a line guide by providing low friction coatings to the ring surfaces which the line contacts during casting.
Another approach is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 6,230,432 to “Blank”. In Blank, a line guide for a fishing rod consists of a specific trumpet-shaped tubular guide ring having an interior surface consisting entirely of a polished ceramic or hardened metal. Blank discloses providing this trumpet-shaped tubular guide ring on a closest line guide of a fishing rod to the fishing reel. The Blank tubular guide ring is designed to focus the fishing line during a cast by gradually reducing the diameter of the passageway through which the fishing line must pass. According to Blank, the guide is believed to focus the line into a more straight path more quickly from the initial large diameter helical coil of line coming off of the reel that exists between the reel and the first line guide. These approaches have not been fully effective.